Part of estate planning involves selecting a fiduciary, the person who will play the role of managing and distributing your assets according to your wishes after your death. Your fiduciary can be an executor, trustee, or personal representative, and their role is...
Jacksonville Estate Planning And Elder Law Blog
Why new parents need to make an estate plan
People sometimes assume that estate planning is an activity to engage in when they retire. They may be waiting until they are in their 60s or 70s to make a plan that passes their assets on to the next generation. But it can be risky to procrastinate estate planning,...
What are advance directives, and do my aging parents need them?
An advanced health directive can allow your aging parents to clarify their wishes about medical orders like DNR (do not attempt resuscitation) or POLST (physical orders for life-sustaining treatment). Simply put, advance directives empower older adults to make known...
5 different types of trusts
A will is a legal document that helps designate assets to beneficiaries. However, this document can also face taxes, disputes and delays. People can add trusts into their estate plans to avoid these issues. A trust allows a grantor to give assets to a trustee who is...
Understanding liability on contaminated properties in a living trust
Trusts are tricky, but once you get a good grasp of how they work and the responsibilities that come with it, you can add properties without worries. However, when the properties you want to include in your living trust are contaminated, the rules on liability are...
Tips for avoiding probate
Probate is a legal process that can be time-consuming and costly, and it often adds unnecessary stress to an already difficult situation. Fortunately, there are strategies you can employ to avoid probate and streamline the transfer of your assets to your heirs....
Do all creditors get paid during a Florida probate?
Before personal representatives distribute an estate’s assets to the decedent’s heirs and beneficiaries, they should first pay the deceased debts and obligations as part of the probate process. However, this does not mean that every creditor who makes a claim against...
How often should you update your estate plan?
An estate plan is one of the most important legal documents you can ever prepare. With a valid estate plan in place, you can rest assured that your wishes will be honored if you are incapacitated or when you are not around to speak for yourself. For your estate plan...
What is the difference between an heir and a beneficiary?
When creating an estate plan, people are generally leaving their assets to heirs and beneficiaries. These groups may have some overlap, but there are some key distinctions between the two. To start with, heirs are direct descendants of the deceased. This term is most...
What is the Alzheimer’s Disease Initiative?
Alzheimer's is a severe condition that often sets in with age, affecting seniors. Florida acknowledges that it could impact a significant part of the state's population, prompting the local government to establish the Alzheimer's Disease Initiative (ADI). This respite...